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Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Mon Doudou

The first thing a French bebe gets to hold after his/her maman's tata is a Doudou. In the USA we call it a 'blankie' or 'Teddy' This pensive post was inspired by a Metro poster of a French kid clutching her Doudou. I kept seeing clutched doudous like on rue de Rivoli and the wheels started turning. *Note French adult on the right clutching his iPod (a doudou in disguise) A chic or tres classe doudou in mariniere stripes matching the kid's shirt, seen in a high-end shop on rue Tronchet - being well co-ordinated in Paris starts early. A giant doudou at ART-PARISEcole Ritz Escoffier has plenty of adorable doudous (presumably for adults) if you want to shell out 39-69 euros... Can you take your doudou to Angelina? Oui, as long as he puts his purse on a chair and NOT the floor. Reading a table is allowed.The doudou as fashion accessory - I first spotted Bear at Sonia Rykiel Saint-Germain it was a coup de foudre/instant love. Once I owned another Sonia doudou. In the '80's SR made fab faux furs. Matching jaguar doudous were slung round the neck. I bought a black one and used to perch it on my suitcase at customs - I would sail through with ease. Frenchdoudous are part of my history.

Can a doudou have his own doudou?

This question keeps me up at night...

I now fully comprehend the French obsession with adorablechocolateanimals at Paques/Easter. They are doudous in disguise!

A giant Easter bear/doudou being created in the Paris Ritz chocolate lab - remembrances of things past?

My brother and I have tortured a "nounours" during several years, with many surgical internventions, my mother fixed it each time. It was the only kind of toy we got. It has been lost.... too bad ! I got dolls but I never play with it because I prefered play with plomber-made soldiers and cars with my brother...But my mother has kept all my dolls and doll'clothes because she made them herself.... all in her furniture again !

Sweet! My sister Claudia had a favorite stuffed Panda bear as a kid, and she held that thing wherever she went. She'd "scratch" the fur with her hand, in a sort of trance, and eventually, my mom had to mend the fur over and over again, because she would scratch right through it every time. I still remember her doing that. I never had a blankie, but I did have a doll I loved. Nice to know French kids have their "doudous!!"

The doudou! Oh how I remember my youngest son lining up for maternelle and seeing all those well loved doudous! The teacher asked me where his was, and I told her I was his doudou. I was all he ever wanted. (It was a little exhausting. :))Great post!

A little French one was here on Monday with his doudou...& whenever he sees GG the cat drag her little organic cotton mouse around in her mouth, he exclaims... Julie, jolie Julie! Est ce ton doudou ? Ah, Tu est mignon.

He does the 'jolie Julie' in a sing song all the time it is so damn cute...I'll get him another doudou.

J'ai encore dormir avec mon doudou chiot. Il l'aimait. J'ai perdu il ya un an (encore sooo douloureux) and I have my own too now. I can't recall any when I was a kid. They're somehow comforting, not demanding at all, never soil themselves, don't get sick and they're just there for you.

When I was last in Paris I spent a blissful hour of sensory overload at Fragonard perfumerie. Why I didn't buy a bottle of their Emilie parfum I don't know. Fragonard will be one of my first stops (after Notre Dame and The Cluny Museum) when I'm in Paris in September!

Oh, those security blankets, mislaid or lost ones, the bane (or shall I say "pain"?) of all parents! One of my daughters left her sock-sized bear-lookalike on the pillow of her unmade bed at the Novotel in Manhattan. It was gone when we returned at night! What catastrophe! The whole family is still cross with that hotel chain! ;-)

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♥carol gillott♥

Paris, Ile de France, France

I moved to Paris 2 years ago. I should have done it sooner but that's how the macaron crumbles. Living on the Ile Saint Louis next to the Seine after the 19eme is 'la cerise sur la gâteau'. It doesn't get any better. I've painted watercolors for Bocuse, Champagne Mumm, Guerlain, Frederick Cassel, The Russian Tearoom and the Maharana of Udaipur.
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